Firefly Cinema is releasing version 6 of their color management suite of software applications, FirePlay, FireDay and FirePost.

“Our goal has always been to provide production tools that help the workflow from the set through post production,” Philippe Reinaudo, the CEO of Firefly Cinema told The Broadcast Bridge in an interview direct from Paris. “Firefly Cinema is a triad of FirePlay for immediate location playback which helps the on-set job of the DP and the video village contribution of the DIT (Digital Imaging Technician), FireDay for digital dailies and asset management, and FirePost for color finishing which makes the post production colorist’s responsibilities easier.”

As Reinaudo explained, this software is intentionally designed for independent productions as well as big budget features. To facilitate this, they have adopted a cost-efficient SaaS (Software as a Service) subscription model that lets productions pay only for what they need when they need it.

Actually, the starting point, FirePlay, is free.

It gives you a previewing tool that can accommodate almost any camera format with rudimentary preview color grading to give the DP an idea of what his/her images are going to look like.

“FireFly V6 is also completely ready for all types of HDR,” Reinaudo told me.

These color grading settings are then automatically sent to an external LUT (Look Up Table) box where the results can be seen on a calibrated monitor. That means the DIT can now evaluate any type of RAW file on a calibrated screen before heading back to the studio.

At the same time, the newly-generated color information is stored as metadata.

Then FireDay provides digital dailies management that can accommodate any camera format with simple yet powerful color grading and sync control., and adds to the color correction metadata. FireDay also automatically makes copies of your digital originals for archival purposes, checks for accuracy using MD5, XXHash and bit-to-bit algorithms. At the same time, an untouched Apple ProRes or Avid DNxHD proxy file is created for the editor to begin cutting.

In the new version 6, FireFly has added support for LUT hardware from Teradek COLR, Flanders Scientific’s monitors and BoxIO devices, OffHollywood’s OMOD, and Panasonic’s VariCam.

Then, for color specialists in finishing suites and color labs who need high-end coloring tools with unlimited primary and secondary grading, FirePost provides sophisticated color effects, managed rendering, and a collaborative workflow support when larger teams are required. In V6, FirePost added GLSL (OpenGL Shading Language) shader capability. Pixelspan’s Bit Exact Round Trip compression format is also now supported with the addition of a Pixspan license for working with full resolution images.

“We originally got the idea for FireFly about 15 years ago when we were involved with posting a film in which multiple people were involved with color grading the same project, all using different systems and all working in different color spaces,” Reinaudo shared with us. “It was absolutely crazy seeing how many people were involved doing exactly the same job. So we created FireFly to bring the science of color all under the same workflow process.

Author’s note:

Filmmakers on the east coast and the denizens of Paris may appreciate the irony that we Hollywooders in the US southwest aren’t aware of what a real “firefly” is. These harmless insects don’t exist in desert climates. Trust me, fireflies are delightful little winged air-dancers with a phosphorus glow in their tails that lend a sparkly twinkle to summer evenings.

Like FireFly Cinema V6, you need to experience them to appreciate them.

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